1. Field of the Invention
The present invention provides a method of dynamic database association, and more particularly, to a method of dynamic database association in multi-mode communication device.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A conventional portable mobile device contains communication-related functions, where the conventional portable mobile device may be a cell phone. As a result of diversification in communication modes, there may be various available communication networks that can be used by the same cell phone, and there may be various types of communication networks provided by different Internet service providers (ISP). For example, there may be different communication networks including the global system for mobile (GSM) communication network and the Wi-Fi radio broadband communication network used by a same cell phone.
A conventional communication network provides services related to information of a user of a portable mobile device, where the provided services include phone books, emails, or instant messengers. Moreover, provided services of communication networks vary with types of the communication networks. For example, communication networks of a certain type provides services of multimedia messages, where the provided services including managing multimedia files, which include pictures, music files, and video files, with built-in databases in a cell phone corresponding to different communication networks, transmitting the managed multimedia files with the different communication networks, or performing communication-related services. The provided services of the certain type may also be implemented in a contact-information-related manner and be stored in the different databases corresponding to the different communication networks. For example, certain cell phones are enabled to read and display contact-information-related pictures, music files, or video files while an external contact calls the phones.
However, since there is more than one communication network used on a cell phone, and since there are similarities and differences between catalogued contacts on different contact lists, each of which is independently established on the cell phone for a specific one of the more than one communication network, when the cell phone utilizes a first communication network, and when a user of the cell phone would like to contact a specific contact, whose personal contact information is not catalogued on a first contact list of the first communication network but on a second contact list of a second communication network, the cell phone has to be switched to utilize the second communication network so that the specific contact can be contacted with the second contact list. As mentioned, it takes additional time for the user to wait until the cell phone has been switched to utilize the second communication network so that the user would feel inconveniences in switching communication networks utilized by the cell phone.
Please refer to FIG. 1, which is a diagram of independently managing databases of different communication networks in a single cell phone according to the prior art. As shown in FIG. 1, the cell phone may utilize the GSM/GPRS (Global System for Mobile Communications/General Packet Radio Service) network. The cell phone includes a first communication network engine 102 for accessing a telephone directory 106 stored in a first database 104. Note that all of the first communication network engine 102, the first database 104, and the telephone directory 106 may merely be utilized when the cell phone utilizes the GSM/GPRS network. Similarly, since the cell phone may also utilize the Wi-Fi radio broadband communication network with the VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), the cell phone further includes a second communication network engine 108 for accessing an instant messenger contact list 112 stored in a second database 110. Note that all of the second communication network engine 108, the second database 110, and the instant messenger contact list 112 may merely be utilized when the cell phone utilizes the Wi-Fi radio broadband communication network. It indicates a fact that managements of both the first database 104 and the second database 110 are independent since both of the first database 104 and the second database 110 may merely be utilized under different communication networks. For a user of a cell phone capable of utilizing at least one communication network, the indicated fact slows the user down since said user has to know which communication network the cell phone currently utilizes in advance for accessing a required contact list to contact a wanted contact.
Besides, take both the telephone directory 106 and the instant messenger contact list 112 mentioned in FIG. 1 as examples. The telephone directory 106 may has attributes including a full name, a telephone number, web information, personal multimedia information, a job, an address, and a birthday, of the user. The instant messenger contact list 112 may has attributes including a full name, an instant messenger identity, a presence status, a share text, a telephone number, web information, personal multimedia information, a job, an address, a birthday, and a brief introduction, of the user. The full name of the user includes a first name and a second name, which may also be denoted as a surname. The web information of the user includes at least one email address, addresses of personal blogs or personal websites, and instant messenger accounts. The personal multimedia information includes personal photos and telephone ringer files. The presence status is utilized for indicating whether a corresponding contact is present. The shared text indicates a brief description, which the user would like to share with all contacts, and an alias, which the user would like to show certain or all contacts. A database utilized by the telephone directory 106 is a conventional static database, and such as the database utilized in the contact list of Microsoft Outlook is just a conventional static database. A database utilized by the instant messenger contact list 112 is a novel dynamic database, and such as databases utilized in the contact lists of MSN (Microsoft Network), Skype, and Google Talk are just dynamic databases. As can be observed in the abovementioned descriptions, attributes of both the telephone directory 106 and the instant messenger contact list 112 overlap partially, and differentiate partially though, and it indicates the fact that it is inconvenient for the user to simultaneously manage both databases of the telephone directory 106 and the instant messenger contact list 112 in a same cell phone, where both the telephone directory 106 and the instant messenger contact list 112 are managed independently.